The City of Madison Board of Estimates authorized a planning process with Marcus/Urban Land Interests for the development of the proposed Public Market Square area Monday.
Proposed developments for the area, which is the current site of the Madison Municipal Building, include a market, underground parking ramp, bicycle center and hotel.
Marcus Hotels, Inc. owns the rights to any hotel construction on Block 88, and will work with Urban Land Interests to develop a 12-block area near it, including the block where the current Government East Parking Ramp is located.
Ald. Satya V. Rhodes-Conway, District 12, said she wants to ensure the hotel will use sustainable methods for energy.
""They will do all of the things that it takes to be a sustainable building,"" Rhodes-Conway said. ""They will manage their energy well, they will create their own energy, they will manage all of their storm water and they will use low-impact development techniques.""
After a short discussion with the representatives and George Austin, the head of the project for the city, the board passed the process unanimously.
Austin said the planning process is necessary because of the complexity of the different projects coming together and deciding what to do with the Madison Municipal Building.
""As you can see there's a number of disparate components,"" Austin said. ""We need to begin to pull all that together in a coordinated way to understand how the pieces fit together and support one another to optimize the best project.""
Austin also said the city wants more hotel rooms to accommodate the nearby Monona Terrace.
Madison capped its contribution to the planning process at $200,000.
The original intent of the development was to build around the proposed high-speed rail station, which has since been cancelled. However, the city still plans to build in the area in case high-speed rail returns.
